Spring-latch.



Patented January 3, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

FREDERICK FESSLER, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA.

SPRING-LATCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 779,355, dated January3, 1905.

Application filed April 23, 1904. Serial No. 204,525.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FREDERICK FEssLER, of Indianapolis, county ofMarion, and State of Indiana, have invented a certain new and usefulSpring-Latch; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description thereof, reference'beinghad to theaccompanying drawings, in which like figures refer to like parts.

The object of this invention is to provide convenient and practicalmeans that is at the same time very simple and cheap for holding closedstable-doors and the like.

The nature of this invention will be understood from the accompanyingdrawings and the following description and claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of abuilding or similar structure with the spring-latch in place, partsbeing in horizontal section and parts broken away. Fig. 2 is aperspective view of the base-plate of the spring-latch. Fig. 3 shows aplan view of the spring-latch with the parts of the building inhorizontal section, the spring-latch being loose. as Fig. 3, showing thespring-latch tightened.

In the drawings, represents a door, such as one would find in connectionwith a stable or similar building, and 11 is the door-casing.

The spring-latch consists of three parts base-plate 12, a latch 13, anda lever 14. The base-plate 12 consists of a plate with suitablescrew-holes 15 for securing it to the casing 11 of the building adjacentthe door to be held. It also has an inturned point 16, that may bedriven into the door-casing for assisting and holding it in place. Ithas two oppositelyplaced ears 17, perforated, and through theperforations the ends 18 of the lever 14 are fulcrumed.

The lever 14 consists of a strong wire bent in the middle and near eachend coiled once about a pin 19 and at each end turned at a right angleoutward to form the ends 18, that are fulcrumed in the cars 17. Thecoils about the pin 19 are preferably loose enough to give to the endsof the lever 14 some yielding Fig. 4 is the same movement. Between thearms of the lever 14 the hook 13 is pivoted on the pin 19. The hook isadapted to be caught into engagement with a staple 20, secured to thedoor 10. The hook is of such length or the plate 12 is so located on thedoor-casing as to require considerable force comparatively to push thelever 14 in against the door-casing so as to move the hook 13 past thefulcrum-point of the ends 18 of the lever, as shown in Fig. 4. Thespring-latch is in its loose position in Fig. 3. Then the hook 13 isoutside or beyond the fulcrum-point. held very tightly, and thespring-latch is easily manipulated for opening and closing the'door.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A spring-latch including a hook adapted to engage the thing to beheld in place, a lever formed of spring-wire bent in the middlelooplike, and with its sides parallel and the eX- treme ends turned at aright angle in opposite directions, a pin about which the sides of thelever are coiled and to which the end of the hook is connected betweenthe sides of the lever, and means for pivotally mounting the ends ofsaid lever.

2. A spring-latch consisting of a base-plate adapted to secure thespring-latch in place and having a pair of outwardly-extending earsperforated, a lever formed of wire bent in the middle with the two sidesparallel and the extreme ends turned outwardly and fulcrumed in saidears, a pin about which the two sides of the lever are coiled betweentheir ends, and a wire hook connected with said pin between the sides ofthe lever at one end and at the other end adapted to engage the thing tobe he c.

In witness whereof I have hereunto afiixed my signature in the presenceof the witnesses herein named.

FREDERICK FEssLER.

W itn esses:

N. ALLEMONG, G- FoL'rz.

The result'is that the door is-

